It Only Took a Tragedy
by justanotheraspiringauthor
Summary: Draco and Ginny have more in common than just pureblood, they have family members who have been killed by Voldemort. Will a romance ensue when they go seeking revenge together?
1. Author's Notes

**It Only Took a Tragedy**

_…to bring them together._

Summary: Draco Malfoy and Ginny Weasley have more in common than just pureblood, they have family members who have been killed by Voldemort. Will a romance ensue when they go seeking revenge on the Dark Lord together?

Rating: PG-13 for some violence, sexual situations, and language. (But nothing too bad, mind you.)

Author's Notes: Sorry for the long break. I've been going through a lot lately. I've gotten my creativity back, so I'm continuing the story! 

Thanks to all the reviewers as well!!! Except I'm sort of sad because no one has reviewed the new chapters! 

The poem is not mine! I don't know who rights it, though. Maybe someone will know and I can the rightful person credit!


	2. Chapter 1: The Funeral

** Chapter 1: The Funeral**

Blood. That's all he remembered seeing. Blood everywhere. A crimson pool of pure blood had stained the white, ornate marble flooring. His father had been sacrificed to be used as paints, and the artwork was displayed all over the walls of the Malfoy Manor.

The numerous skulls and crossbones that had collaged the walls had been scrubbed off a few days ago, but Draco's mind still flashed back to his father's death by the faint images of the sign of the Dark Lord that had permanently seeped into the paint. Blood. Blood everywhere.

He walked up the winding staircase one steep, small step at a time, something he only did when he had a lot to think about. Golden handrails, oriental rugs – oh how _lovely _his mother had said when she first tasted life as a rich and powerful woman. Draco had been raised basked in wealth, so he didn't understand what the big deal was.

With each step he took his mother's crying became louder and louder until the horrid sound rang in his ears. Draco gritted his teeth – she disgusted him. She was not mourning for her husband's death, but rather, his will. Lucius had secretly known of her many affairs, so he punished her by leaving all of the huge family fortune to his only child.

Draco walked down the long hallway, completely ignoring the expensive statues and paintings of the many Malfoy men and women that had come before him. By the door to his room was an elaborate, beautifully painted portrait of himself when he was eight, and he didn't even bother to smile and nod at it like he usually did.

He pointed his swishy, dragon heartstring wand at the golden chandelier located above his bed. With a simple spell, the twenty or so candles were instantly lit. Draco realized for the first time the eerie glow they cast over the room as they flickered on his mahogany furniture.

He stood in front of the mirror as he slipped into his black satin pajamas that had been laid out for him by one of the house elves. The coolness of the material against his skin made him shiver. 

His passion to not let Potter outshine him had motivated Draco to intensely train for the upcoming Quidditch season, and he stared wide-eyed at his reflection. He noticed every shocking improvement that his sixteen-year-old body had undergone. Draco's skinniness could now be taken as an athlete's toned leanness, and his countless hours of being burnt by the sun's rays had tanned his pale skin. As seeker and captain of the Slytherin team, he would lead his team to victory to top off his last year at Hogwarts.

He left his clothes on the floor (the house elves will pick them up anyway) as he proceeded to his vast collection of books. The bookshelf, which rose to the ceiling, was home to a numerous array of books. Some fiction novels, some history textbooks, some spell books, the majority on wizarding politics, but all of them had been given to Draco by his father.

He scanned the alphabetized books for a good read before bed, but he had already read each book in the collection twice or more. When Draco was younger, Lucius used to force him to read books every day - books that his young mind frustratingly couldn't comprehend. When he became a teenager, a little older and a little wiser, he enjoyed reading, and he found the things he learned fascinating. The habit was so ingrained in his system that he couldn't stand going through one day without reading _something_.

He decided that doing some homework would be a better use of his time than reading a book he already had memorized. He opened up his trunk that was filled to the brim with previous and current textbooks as well as school supplies. With a snicker, he pulled out his _Muggle Studies_ book. He needed a good laugh to cheer him up. Why on earth did the Ministry of Magic have to pass a law requiring the useless class to graduate?

He skimmed through the book, not impressed at all with the history of Muggle inventions and accomplishments until he arrived at the chapter on space travel. He refused to admit it to himself, but the Muggle advancements in science and technology, an area the wizarding world was severely lacking in, intrigued him. He decided to write his 5000-word essay on the first moon landing, but by that time he was too exhausted to have his brain transfer his thoughts into sentences. He set the book down, along with his parchment and quill, on his nightstand and decided to call it a night. Tomorrow would be a long, painful day for the young Malfoy.

***

"Master! Master! It is time to wake up!" an annoying, panicky shrill buzzed in Draco's left ear. Rosy, his personal elf, was shaking his shoulders gently. Draco groaned, wishing for the peaceful nights he used to have. Nights were he could get a decent amount of sleep. Nights that weren't interrupted by him waking up to his own fearful screams as he realized he was just having a nightmare. He didn't want to face reality, and that made him regret hearing the elf's wake up call even more than usual.

He squinted as the morning light came through his window. Even though he was clearly awake, Rosy persisted in shaking him. He blindly shoved the elf off of him, except he did it much harder than he wanted to, and caused her to come crashing to the ground. "Don't touch me! Can't you see I'm awake?" he yelled to her as he slowly got out of bed. He felt a little guilty for pushing her so hard, but his pride got in the way of an apology.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy! I am so very, very, very sorry! I'll go punish myself now!" she said with eyes full of guilt.

"You may know proper English, which is a rarity among your kind, but you're still as dumb as the rest of them. There's no need to go slamming your head into the wall or something like that. Just don't do it again." He sighed and waved his hand to dismiss her. "You may go now," he muttered.

The elf clumsily got up off the cold, stone floor. "But – but- but master! I still need to lay out your clothes for you!"

"I'm almost seventeen years old! Don't you think I'm capable of picking out my own clothes?" Draco yelled.

"Why of course, Master! You are smart, Master! So very, very, very, very, very - "

Draco clenched his fists, trying desperately to keep his temper under control. "I get the point! Just leave before I throw you out!" he scowled, pointing to the door.

"Smart," he heard her whisper as she raced out of his room. Draco rolled his eyes and cursed under his breath.

He chose to wear his black suit for special occasions and the nicest robe he could find to wear over it. He dressed himself as quickly as possible to prevent his skin from feeling the cool, morning air for too long. After getting dressed, Draco went into his private bathroom and washed the sleepiness from his eyes. No matter how much he washed, his eyes were bloodshot and were framed with dark circles.

"I look absolutely wretched," he admitted out loud. He quit gawking at himself the moment he heard the breakfast bell ring. At first he hesitated about going. He wasn't hungry nor did he want to look at his mother's tear stained face, but he decided that it would be best if he made a short appearance. He didn't want Narcissa personally coming up to fetch him. Scratch that. He didn't want Narcissa personally sending up a _house elf_ to fetch him.

So Draco went down one steep, small step at a time, the family dog following him at his heels. "What is the matter with you, Cobra? This must be the first time you haven't growled at me or tried to bite me!" Cobra was a chestnut and white English Toy Spaniel that oddly reminded Draco of Pansy Parkison. She followed him into the dining room.

"Oh, my baby! Come to Mummy!" Of course, Narcissa was talking about the dog. Cobra hopped up onto her lap while Draco took a seat at the opposite end of the table.

There was a long moment of silence. Draco was nibbling on his toast and jam. 

"Are you not hungry, dear?" his mother asked with a look of concern on her overly made-up face.

"Not really, Narcissa."

She sighed. "Draco, how many times have I told you not to call me by my first name. I'm your mother and you will address me as so."

Draco glared at her. "Yes, _mother_."

"I'm not about to listen that smart arse mouth of yours. All that I'm going through and this is how you're treating me? What would your father think?" she asked in a stern voice.

At the mention of his father, Draco blew up. "Like it matters now!" he yelled. "He's dead, Mum! You can't go tattling on my bad behavior to him anymore. You have no one to beat me for the things I say to you, and that irks the _hell _out of you, doesn't it? Almost as much as it irks you that you don't get any of his money!"

Narcissa's jaw dropped. "I almost died giving birth to you! Three days and nights of nothing but horrible, wretched agony that I had never felt in all - " she screamed at him. Cobra was scared and had run out of the room by now.

"Goodbye," Draco said as got up from the table. He muttered under his breath, "_Narcissa_."

He spent the remainder of the morning lying on his bed with his pillow over his face. He didn't feel like doing anything else. Every once in a while he would check his watch. "Only one hour until the funeral."

***

"We have for a while lost one who is dear to us, and we fear that loss," he heard the priestess say.

Draco looked at the sea of people who had shown up to the funeral. He presumed that they were all there merely for status.

"But it is only for a time, and we will lose our sorrow."

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The air felt heavy, and he thought that a storm was probably on the way.

"There is a reason for being here, and a reason for going."

He was right. With a great clash of thunder the rain started to pour. He heard many people groan for having to get wet.

"We must all journey beyond to pause, to rest, and to wait for those who are loved – in a place from the cares of the world – with happiness and strength renewed."

But he liked the rain. The drops on his face made his tears unnoticeable.

"For dying is only a mode of forgetting, a way of rest, a way of returning to the Eternal Source, however we may see it." 

He finally opened his eyes. Everyone was huddled under umbrellas, trying desperately to shield themselves from the downpour. Almost everyone. There was one person, like him, who didn't seem to mind. She was too far away for him to make out a face.

"What is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides - that it may rise, and expand, and seek its Gods unencumbered?"

After the funeral was over, he made his way towards the girl.

"Draco," she whispered.

"Ginny Weasley? What on earth are _you_ doing here?"

"I came here to forgive your father," she said as she looked up at him with her chocolate colored eyes.

He didn't have to ask what she was talking about. Lucius had bragged for months for slipping Ginny that enchanted diary.

He snarled. "It's a bit late for that, don't you think? What's the _real _reason you came here? Wanted to see your dear Harry Potter's enemy cry for once?"

Ginny tried her best not to get angry with him. "Look, I know what you're going through. My brother Percy was killed by You-Know-Who two months ago." Tears started to well up in her eyes just thinking about it. Draco didn't know what to say, so they just stood there in akward silence.

"Umm, Draco?"

"Yes."

"I, uh, have this poem," she said as she pulled a scrap of parchment from her pocket. "It sort of comforts me when I think of Percy's death. Would you like to have it?"

He held out his hand. "The rain's made ink smudged. I can't read it."

"Well, a simple _Repairo_ spell can fix that."

Draco rolled his eyes. "And you don't think I know that? I don't have my wand with me."

He was making it really difficult for her to be nice to him. "And you don't think I know that you know that? Err, nevermind. I have a better idea. I'll just recite it to you since I have it memorized."

"I suppose I'll let you."

She brushed that remark off.

_"Do not stand at my grave and weep,  
I am not there, I do not sleep.  
I am a thousand winds that blow,  
I am the diamond glints on snow.  
I am sun on ripened grain,  
I am the gentle Autumn's rain.  
When you wake in the morning's hush  
I am the swift uplifting rush  
Of quiet birds in circled flight.  
I am the stars that shine at night.  
Do not stand at my grave and cry,  
I am not there, I did not die."_

"Not bad." 

_Not bad? That's it?_ Ginny couldn't believe there was no emotion, no response from him whatsoever. 

He turned around to see his mother walking towards him. He didn't want her to see who he was talking to. "Goodbye, Ginny," he quickly said. 

_Oh, well__._ At least he hadn't called her by her last name. That must have been a first. "Goodbye, Draco." 

*** 

When Draco got home he ran up to his room, two steps at a time. Grabbing his wand, he muttered "_Repairo_." He lied down on his bed and read the poem silently to himself, over and over again. 

Except this time he cried. 


	3. Chapter 2: Running Away

**Chapter 2: Running Away**

Ginny stowed away to her room as slowly and quietly as possible, trying not to squeak as her high heels hit the rickety old steps. _Five more steps to go... Four more.... Three more... What's that?_

She froze to hear the noise again, fearing she might have been caught. She looked over her shoulder to see her impending doom, and certainly enough, her mother was at the bottom of the staircase. Ginny's stomach lurched as she locked eyes with her mother's. She knew she was in for some hard punishments. 

"Where have you been, young lady?" Mrs. Weasley screamed up at her daughter, arms crossed and cheeks puffed out. "You know you have to ask permission before you go anywhere! We've been looking for you for over two hours!" 

Ginny had never been a good liar. "Umm, well...," she stammered as she walked down the steps as slowly as she had come up them.

"Speak up right this minute and maybe your father and I will go easy on you."

Ginny sighed. "I can't tell you," she whispered, her eyes looking down at the pool of water that was collecting from the drips running down her robes.

Mrs. Weasley's fist were clenched and her right foot was tapping sporadically, something she only did when her temper is rising. "Oh, my word. What on earth have you done that you can't bring to tell me?"

_Did she not understand what I just said?_

"Mummy, please. I can't." As hard as she tried to fight back her tears, they started to well up in her eyes and burn. She tuned out her mother's ramblings, her best coping mechanism, until she couldn't hold her emotions in any longer. Bursting into tears, she ran up the steps and locked herself in her room.

She buried herself under her covers and cried, wishing she could just lay there for a month or two. After crying for a good half hour, she stopped and began replaying the scene in her head. She thought about what her mother had said and started to get angry. _Ron doesn't have to ask permission to do anything. George and Fred always got away with things. I leave one afternoon and she freaks out! _She began punching the feather pillow over and over again, something she did often when her brothers teased her or her parents griped at her.

She had the sudden urge to do something drastic - rebel. It's not like she'd never felt like that before, but today was the first time she gathered up enough courage to so blatantly break rules. Why not act upon her spontaneity again? _Maybe I should prove to everyone that I'm not a child anymore._

So a plan, which had begun as an angry and cruel thought, started to form in the mind of the young, barely sixteen, Virginia Weasley. _I'll run away for awhile - make them wish I was there and regret what they've said and done to me all these years. _She gathered up some clothes, of course all hand-me-downs, her secret junk food stash from under her bed, a hairbrush full of bright red, tangled strands, and all the money she had saved up, which was close to around ten dollars. She pondered to herself how she'd never been a good money saver. Hands shaking, she put them in her tattered brown backpack. 

She opened her window and examined the old oak tree she would climb down. The branches were swaying back and forth from the strong, howling winds, reminding her of the Whomping Willow located at Hogwarts. They were casting eerie shadows in her bedroom, and she remembered how she thought they were trying to capture her when she was a little girl with her covers pulled over her head. 

Ginny quickly changed from her black dress into a stained white tee-shirt and some old, long jeans that were frayed at the bottom where she had walked on them. She put her hair up in a ponytail rather clumsily and filled with bumps, but she didn't mind her appearance. She didn't know for sure where she was going, but she knew she wanted to be in solitude.

She took once last glance at her room before grabbing hold of a sturdy, thick branch. She had climbed this tree a thousand times before, and it had become second nature to her where exactly to put her feet so she wouldn't fall. But the slipperiness of the bark from the rain and the darkness of the night was making it very difficult to maintain her balance. Halfway down, she fell face first onto the ground, with only the muddy puddle under her to soften her fall. Her clothes drenched and her body bruised, she bit her lip to keep from crying. She was outside her parents' window, and she didn't want to be discovered... yet.

She walked slowly up the gravel path, hearing every crunch her steps made while being imprinted into the pebbles. Ginny looked back to notice rainwater collecting in her footprints. Suddenly she had a nervous feeling in her stomach, and it hit her the seriousness of her actions. She stood there in the rain, thinking about her options. _I can't climb back up the oak to my room - the window doesn't open from the outside. I can't walk through the door and up the steps - it's too risky. I can't run away because I don't know where the hell I'd run to - the nearest city is about five miles away. _She finally decided to hide out in the shed, even though she felt pathetic and wimpy for doing it.

She opened the creaky, rusted door to the shed and turned on the light. Filled with garden tools, gnome repellant, and cobwebs, she sat down on a cardboard box and tried to make herself as comfortable as possible. She turned off the light and instead used her wand as a mini flashlight, using the _Lumos _spell. She was slightly afraid of the dark, so she couldn't stand to not have any light whatsoever. Being as quiet as possible, she could hear the sound of her own breathing, crickets living in the crevices of the worn down shed, the cackle of thunder, and the ping ping of heavy raindrops and hail hitting the metal roof. It was all too noisy, and she prayed that lightning wouldn't strike her dead or a tornado wouldn't mow her over. 

After about an hour of sitting there worrying about a million things, Ginny heard the familiar crunch of footsteps walking along the path to her home. "Oh my Merlin, what is that?" she whispered to no one. She had no idea who could be walking up to her house in that weather and that late. At first she thought about ignoring whoever it was, but curiosity got the best of her. She tried opening the door to the shed quietly and just enough to peak at whoever it was, but the door squeaked loudly, making the stranger turn around.

She flashed her wand at the stranger just as he flashed his at her. To her surprise it was the person she least expected she would ever see on her property - the infamous Draco Malfoy. "Draco, what on earth are you doing here?" she said, wide eyed and shocked.

He shook his head and gave a snarl while looking at her from head to toe as she walked towards him. "More importantly, why the hell are you in the shed? Is your family too poor to even afford you a real bedroom?" He hid the fact that he was slightly turned on by the curves her soaked clothing revealed. It was the first time he'd noticed her as a girl instead of that no good Ron's little sister.

Before Ginny could reply to that rude remark, a flash of cloud-to-ground lightning struck only a couple of yards away from where they were standing. With a startled scream and jump, she grabbed Draco's hand instinctively and ran into the shed, slamming the door behind them.

Ginny was leaning against the door, shaking all over and breathing heavily. She looked over at Draco, who was wiping the hand she touched, and she became rather furious inside. Worse than that, Draco was as calm as can be and grinning at her, as if he was taking great pleasure in watching her panic.

"What do you think is so funny?" she asked. "If we were standing just a few yards to the left we could have been electrocuted to death!" She became even more offended when he started to chuckle.

"The look of fear on your face was priceless! I conjured that lightning bolt myself."

She sneered at him, her tone matching her fiery red hair. "That's bull. There's no way you know magic that powerful to where you can just whip out a lightning bolt. You're just making that up to hide the fact you were afraid too." Even though she didn't want to believe him, Ginny's stomach did a little flip-flop when he confessed just how powerful his magic was. 

"Believe whatever you want," Draco said with raised eyebrows.

A long, silent pause that seemed to scream awkward occurred at that moment in the rundown shed of the Weasley family. Today Ginny had communicated with Draco more than she had in all her years at Hogwarts combined. She couldn't believe there they were, sitting next to each other, in the most ridiculous of situations. She sighed loudly.

"What was that for?" Draco asked, relieved to break the silence.

"This whole thing just seems so stupid," she said, rolling her eyes. She couldn't even remember why she had thought of running away. _What was so wrong with going to Lucius Malfoy's funeral anyways?_ _Why couldn't I just have told Mother the truth? I'm so foolish. _She added as a second thought, "And you never told me why you're here."

"Well, you never told me why you're in the shed," he replied as he swatted at a spider trying to spin its web above him.

"I asked you first," she said rather boldly while starting to feel more comfortable in Draco's presence.

"Ohhh, feisty, aren't we? You should watch who you're talking to. I am a Malfoy, you know." He puffed his chest out and raised up his chin, looking completely idiotic to Ginny.

"What, am I supposed to be scared or something? Gonna turn me into stone with your evil eye?" she said sarcastically, getting right up in Draco's face. If she had learned one good thing from having six older brothers, it was not allowing anyone to push her around. At least not anymore. Over the years, Ginny had slowly grown out of her shyness, even though it still crept back up on her in certain circumstances.

Draco's smirk disappeared into a solemn frown as he took the poem he had given her out of his trench coat pocket. That changed Ginny's mood as well, from sarcastic to serious. As well as he could hide it, Ginny could sense the sorrow in Draco's silver-blue, sunken eyes.

"I came because... well...," Draco stammered, "because I wanted to tell someone about my father's death... and you came to the funeral... and your brother's life was lost to the Death Eaters as well."

Ginny backed off of him. "Yes? Did you want to talk about it?" Gently grabbing his shoulder, Ginny said in a soft and comforting voice, "I'm here for you, Draco." She couldn't believe the words that were coming out of her mouth. Here was a person who badmouthed her family, her friends, and even herself, and she was telling him she was there for him? But as much as she loathed his words, she couldn't turn her back to someone when they were reaching out to her - especially if they came in the middle of the night during a thunderstorm. Honestly, she needed someone to talk to about Percy's death who seemed to understand where she was coming from. Everyone in her family seemed to ignore it as much as they ignored the frightful truth of Voldemort's power.

With tears nearly coming to his eyes, Draco asked her, "Then will you help me?"

She was puzzled. "Help you with what?"

"Help me seek revenge on the Dark Lord," he said with determination.

At first Ginny thought it was a joke. Draco's demeanor told her otherwise, and she dared not laugh.

"I would love to murder with my bare hands every one of those damn Death Eaters and You-Know-Who. But Draco, be realistic. How the hell could we possibly pull something off like that?"

He stood up and shouted, "If your dearest Harry Potter did it as a baby, why couldn't we?" She stood up to reply, but right when she opened her mouth, Draco grabbed her shoulders and interrupted her. "Ginny, do it for your brother, and his life that was cut too short."

Tears started to stream down her face for the thousandth time since Percy left her. "Okay," she whispered.

If only she knew what she was getting in to.


	4. Chapter 3: Illegal Apparition

**Chapter 3: Illegal Apparition**

Draco and Ginny talked for awhile about when they heard the news of their family member's death, and all that came afterwards. Draco was reluctant to open up, Ginny could tell, but he told her a little bit, like how he has nightmares.

"I know how you feel. After the whole diary incident, I had nightmares for weeks." Ginny could see Draco's eyes concentrate on the dirt floor the moment she mentioned Tom Riddle's enchanted diary. To her, he almost looked like he wanted to apologize for it, but he kept silent.

Finally he perked up, obviously wanting to end the depressing talk of death. "Weasley, you never told me why you're in the shed."

Her cheeks turned red with embarrassment. "I was, uh, running away."

"Really? I could never imagine such a obedient girl like you ever defying her parents. I'm impressed. Although," he chuckled, "you didn't get very far."

"I'm too smart to get caught in this storm," she defended herself, while implying that Draco was stupid.

"Oh... is that why you stayed in this rundown old thing? It's bound to blow over any second." Ginny shifted uncomfortably. "Why didn't you just go back into your house?" _Not that that's much better. _

"My window is locked. I wasn't about to risk getting caught!"

Draco rolled his eyes and smacked his forehead, ashamed of her denseness. "Uh, Ginny? You're a witch! Does _Alohomora _ring a bell?"

Her cheeks got even redder and almost matched her hair. "Oops. I guess I didn't think of that." Ginny had always wondered if the only reason she had been accepted to Hogwarts was because of her wizard family. Sometimes she overheard wizards talking about how horrible it would be to be a Muggle, but secretly, sometimes she wished she was one.

"I can see why, you're always hanging around those Mudbl-, I mean, Muggle-borns." Ginny shot him a dirty look.

Draco looked at his golden wristwatch. "It's getting late, I better be going before the house elf discovers me missing and reports it to Narcissa."

Before Ginny could even utter a polite "bye", Draco disappeared. "Whoa," she said out loud in surprise. _Draco can apparate? I wonder what other secrets he has up his sleeve._

_***_

Once the rain died down a bit, Ginny quietly shut the shed door and made her way up back up her favorite tree, which had become her escape tree now. She took Draco's advice, wanting to kick herself for not thinking of it sooner, and whispered, "_Alohomora!_" The window unlocked and she flinched as it flew open. She hoped to Merlin it hadn't awaken her parents or Ron as she closed it behind her.

She quickly got undressed, throwing her wet clothes and her backpack in her rather cluttered closet. Most of the outfits in there were faded, stained, too small, or holey, and they screamed poor every time she covered up her body in them. When Ginny was younger, she blamed her insecurities on her material items, but now that she was a little bit older and wiser, she was finally coming to terms with herself. She no longer felt that shallow. _Draco on the other hand is a lost cause. _

She thought about the slipup of the word "Mudblood" that Draco had uttered as she unlocked her door. She couldn't stand the snooty, old money pureblooded families that pranced around like they were better than everyone else. Maybe she was a little bit envious of the privileged lives they lead, but she would never admit that. She would rather keep her dignity.

Ginny opened the door to see a tray with some leftover tomato soup from supper on it. By it was a note. Ginny felt guilty for running away as she read her mother's handwriting, but relieved that she hadn't been found out.

_Ginny,_

_Since you're giving me the silent treatment, I wrote you this note. Dear, I'm sorry for yelling at you. I was worried that something dreadful might have happened to you. Please just tell me where you're going before you leave the house. I'm making Ron do the same as well. These times are more dangerous than they used to be, and you must understand that. We all love you so much, and never think otherwise - even if sometimes it doesn't seem like we do. Oh yes, and you're grounded for two weeks._

_Mum_

Ginny went back into her room, turning off her light and laying her head on her favorite purple pillow. The more she thought about it, the sillier her little plan seemed. _Mum is right, as usual. Who knows what could have happened to me if I really had gone further than the shed? _She overlooked the grounding completely. Then her mind drifted to the agreement Draco and her made. Well, it was more forced than agreed upon. _Draco's probably just going through a phase of anger. He hasn't gotten over his father's death yet, and doesn't know what to do with himself. _On that thought, she fell asleep, worn out from her long, confusing day.

***

Draco instantly appeared in his room. He did a simple spell to turn on the light. After changing out of his drenched clothing and into some expensive, silk pajamas his grandmother had bought him in Paris, he pulled back the folded covers of his king sized bed and got under them. He smelled the fresh scent of newly cleaned sheets as he drifted off into another unpreventable nightmare.

Suddenly, at around midnight, he was awaken by a surging pain in his arm. The Master was calling him.


	5. Chapter 4: Seducing

**Chapter 4: Seducing**

Draco wished the searing pain would go away, but he knew better. If he disobeyed the Dark Lord, he would certainly be killed, just like his father. He bit his lip as he lifted up his sleeve to reveal the skull and crossbones glowing an astonishing green color. He hated the whole lot for murdering his father. But the only way to beat them was to play their game.... for now, at least.

He whispered the apparition spell his father had taught him long ago to train him for his place in the Inner Circle of Darkness. It was the most powerful branch of the Death Eaters, and he would be automatically accepted into it if he completed a difficult task assigned to him. His initiation would be tonight.

Suddenly, Draco stood in a secluded forest. One by one, more people appeared, hidden in black cloaks. No one said a word. He could not distinguish their faces which were hidden under their hoods. Out of nowhere, a great fire rose out of the earth, and through it came the essence of evil, Voldemort. It was the most shocking thing he had ever saw, but his face remanded expressionless.

Everyone was circled around the fire, and they starting chanting a haunting tune in sync. It caused Draco's spine to shiver. All of the Death Eaters bowed down to their Master, almost as if he was their god. Draco bowed with them, not daring to look Voldemort in his gruesomely deformed face.

"Silence," he heard Voldemort's ice cold voice say.

He walked slowly over to Draco. Draco could sense his physical weakness even without looking at him. His magic and his following, on the other hand, had grown immensely stronger over the years of his return. Each Death Eater gives his own blood to his Lord, making the servant a little bit weaker, and the master a little bit stronger.

"Look at me, boy," he said with a twinge of anger. Draco regrettably looked into his blood red eyes, trying not to show his fear or anger.

Sensing Draco's feeling that he did not want to be there, the Dark Lord laughed wickedly. "Careful. You don't want to end up like your father, do you?" Draco breathed in deeply, his jaw clenched. Nagi, the Master's snake, was rapping her legs around Draco, as a silent warning.

Draco lied. "You mistake me, my Lord. My father deserved to die for disobeying you. I, on the other hand, am here to serve you in any way possible." He was surprised how smoothly he had pulled it off. His lying abilities had always been a talent of his.

"Then get an heir of Gryffindor to join me. How about that girl? She seems the most vulnerable. If not, you can be sure I'll be coming for you." He laughed once again.

Draco knew this would be his task. It was the same task his father had received, but had failed. "It will be done. I guarantee it."

"Seduce her. Lure her into your arms. It won't be that difficult. She fell for me, and of course, history always repeats itself."

"Yes, it certainly does." _You will fall, again. Except this time, I'll make sure you never come back._

At the end of the ceremony, Voldemort dismissed everyone except Draco. He wanted to speak to him alone. "If you succeed, next to me, you will be the most powerful wizard in the world. I know you yearn for that, Draco. I can sense it, even though you want to hold it back. Don't hold anything back. Do whatever it takes. There is no evil in this world, just power, and those whose are too weak to seek it. Keep that in mind, always." A hint of gleam appeared in Draco's silver eyes, though he could not be sure if what he was told was a lie or truth. 

***

A few moments after he got back, Draco heard a knock on his door. It was Narcissa. She handed a small bottle to him. "Give this to her," she whispered.

Draco was taken by surprise. Never in the mansion had either of his parents spoke to him about being Death Eaters, for fearing their house was bugged. The only thing he had ever heard of it was by his father, the day he said, "Tomorrow, you will come. You are old enough now." That was the day before his seventeenth birthday. The day he was for sure of his fate.

"What is it?" he said curiously. The glass bottle was filled with fizzing blue liquid.

She put her finger up to her mouth to quiet him. "Memory potion," she spoke into his ear. He immediately understood her plan. He nodded his head as a thank you. The only thing he couldn't quite understand was _why_ she was helping him. If he died, she would inherit his money that Lucius left him.

After she left, Draco, in his bed, turned the bottle around in circles with his fingers. He was pondering if he should use it or not. It would certainly make things easier... that is, if he were to go through with Voldemort's plan. Which was more impossible, getting Virginia Weasley to fall for him and join the Dark Side, or defeating Voldemort and all the Death Eaters, he wasn't sure. Either way, accomplishing the ultimate evil or good, would win him power and glory. Power can make a man do things he would never think possible. Seeking revenge on his father's killer, or becoming what his father always dreamed for him to be, was a decision that now haunted his mind, even when he tried to fall back asleep. Which one his father would be proudest of, he didn't have a clue. While dreaming, the words, 'there is no good and evil, just power, and those too weak to seek it,' were repeated, over and over, as if Voldemort had planted them in his brain.


	6. Chapter 5: Ginny's Date

**Chapter 5: Ginny's Date**

"Ginny, hurry up! I _really_ have to go!" yelled Ron as he pounded on the bathroom door - the only bathroom in the whole house.

"Just a minute! Good Merlin!" she yelled back as she tried to curl her hair. She had pushed Draco out of her mind. Today was her big date with the boy of her dreams, Harry Potter, and she was determined to make the best of it. She had finally gotten enough courage to ask him out. Well, actually, she had pleaded with Ron to ask him out for her. He said yes, and they were going into Hogsmede at a fancy restaurant called Magic's. Okay, it wasn't that fancy, but she thought anywhere alone with Harry was surely going to be exciting.

She put on a little lip gloss as a finishing touch. She really didn't think she looked pretty, but it was certainly an improvement from the low maintenance Ginny. "Ginny!"

"Okay! Okay! I'm done." She barged out of the door, nearly knocking Ron over.

He gave a disgusted look. "Girls!" he said exasperatedly. 

Ginny walked down the stairs to ask her mother's opinion on how she looked. "Mum, how do I look?" She gave a little turn to show off.

"Oh, dear, you look amazing! That dress I made is breathtaking on you!" Mrs. Weasley had took the two weeks Ginny was grounded to make her dress for the special occasion. Everyone knew how big her crush on Harry was, and especially now, she made a big fuss over him. 

Ginny hugged her mother. The dress she had made was a simple, but elegant. It was a dark green color, that Ginny thought matched Harry's lovely eyes. "Thanks, Mummy."

Her father had just walked in the room. He gave a whistle which made Ginny giggle. "You look beautiful, Gin! I'm going to have to have a talk with Harry before he leaves with you!"

Ginny's cheeks turned red. "Dad! Stop teasing me!"

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Mr. Weasley checked his watch. "That must be Harry," he said as he went to answer it.

"Wait, Dad! Let me go back upstairs!" She was a little bit nervous and wanted to check her appearance one last time before Harry saw her.

"Okay," he laughed. He waited until he heard her door shut before opening the front door.

"Hello, Mr. Weasley," greeted Harry. Harry was dressed in khaki pants and a nice shirt. His hair was messy as usual, but that could not be helped. Sirius, who he was now living with, had bought him contacts to wear since he always seemed to be breaking his glasses in Quidditch scuffles. 

"Hi, Harry! Nice to see you! How's Sirius?" Mr. Weasley asked as he let Harry step in through the door. Mrs. Weasley greeted Harry as well and gave him a big hug. 

"Just fine," Harry replied.

Ron had heard Harry's voice and came downstairs. "Hey, Harry! Ginny will probably be ready in another hour or two," he joked.

Ron and Harry sat on the Weasley's living room couch. It was rather lumpy and uncomfortable, but Harry kept his opinions to himself. After Mr. and Mrs. Weasley went into the kitchen to fix dinner, Ron whispered to Harry, "If you and Ginny start going out, please just don't kiss in front of me. That's too weird."

Harry's cheeks were hot with embarrassment. He knew how awkward this was for his best friend. But throughout the years, Ginny and Harry had just gotten really close to one another. He tried to hide his feelings for a long time, but since Ginny had asked him out, he had no intentions of hiding any longer. He finally realized that she didn't just like him for being the famous Harry Potter anymore, but rather, for who he was. "I'm not, Ron," he finally said.

A few minutes later, Ginny shyly came downstairs. Harry got up quickly and went over to meet her at the bottom of the staircase. She looked into his eyes and smiled. Her stomach felt like there were butterflies fluttering in it when he smiled back. "Hi, Ginny."

"Hi, Harry."

"You look very pretty today."

Ginny giggled. "So I don't look pretty on other days?" she teased him.

Harry's eyes looked down at the floor. "That's not what I meant."

"Oh I know, Harry. I was just joking." _Harry wouldn't realize a joke if it hit him on the head._

Ginny yelled into the kitchen to her father. "I'm ready to go now!" Mrs. Weasley had insisted that Ginny be escorted there and picked up by Mr. Weasley. She had lectured to her it wasn't safe for two young people to be out at night alone. Not wanting to get grounded again, Ginny had reluctantly agreed.

They walked out to Mr. Weasley's new Muggle car. He had won it in a Muggle contest that he had entered, but to anyone besides close friends, it was a secret. Much to Ginny's delight, Harry was being a real gentlemen, even opening the car door for her.

The ride there was fairly silent, besides Mr. Weasley rambling on about his work at the Ministry and asking Harry about various Muggle objects. Ginny spent the time gazing out the window at the shining crescent moon. She was relieved when they finally arrived at the small restaurant where they could finally be alone.

The restaurant was quite charming, Ginny thought as Harry pulled her chair out for her. "Hmm... what are you going to order, Harry?" she said after the waitress handed them a menu.

"Uh, probably the fish sticks," he said, licking his lips.

"Harry, you're looking at the kids' menu," she replied. _Harry can be so... extremely goofy at times._

"Oh, oops," he gave a little laugh to cover up his embarrassment.

"I think I'll have the fettuccini noodles," Ginny said when the waitress returned. Harry ordered the barbecued ribs.

They sat there in awkward silence, Harry staring off into space and Ginny fiddling with her straw. Finally, Ginny asked something that had been on her mind. "Harry, did you just go on this date with me just because you were fed up with me bugging you all the time?"

Harry immediately said no. "Ginny, I really like you. In fact, I wanted to ask you tonight if you would be my girlfriend." He grabbed onto her hands.

After a slight delay, she whispered, "Yes," not really meaning it. At any other time, Ginny would have been overjoyed with what Harry just said. She used to fantasize about being Harry Potter's girlfriend. But when it could finally come true, she wasn't as happy as she seemed. Worse than that, she didn't know why she felt that way. Nothing really made her happy anymore as much as she tried. She felt dead inside.

***

Draco and his girlfriend, Pansy Parkison, were celebrating their one year anniversary. There had been a ball at the Parkison Manor, and now Draco was taking her on a romantic moonlight broom ride on his brand new Firestorm, the improved version of the Firebolt. 

"Draco, how will you propose to me?" she asked dreamily as the wind blew through her hair. Everyone thought it was obvious that they would eventually be married, but Draco got annoyed with her constant nagging about it. He didn't even want to think about spending the rest of his life with... her.

"Hell, I don't know! Don't think about that now." He rolled his eyes.

"Humph! Well I'm cold... and hungry!"

"Okay, I guess we can head back to your house," he said, ready to turn his broom around.

"No, Draco. I'm hungry now! We're over Hogsmede, let's just stop at a restaurant now. I know you have money on you, you always do."

_Money and eating, that's all she cares about. _"Errr, fine." He wasn't about to listen to her whine and complain if she wasn't able to stuff her face immediately. Honestly, she was more spoiled than he was.

"Hold on," he said as she rapped her arms tighter around him. He darted downwards as fast as he could, making her scream in panic. 

When they landed, Pansy shoved him angrily. "Don't scare me like that, you jerk!"

Draco sneered, "I thought you wanted to eat _now_!" He pointed to the door of a cheap slum called Magic's. "Will this satisfy your eloquent tastes?"

"Yes, smart arse," she muttered with an upturned pug nose, as she walked through the door with her hot pink dress swaying in the wind. She didn't want to make the scene worse than it was. People on the street were gawking at them.

Draco and Pansy waited impatiently in the line. Pansy was gossiping about Blaise Zambini going out with a Hufflepuff and what a disgrace that was, but Draco wasn't paying any attention. Instead, he was staring at Ginny Weasley and her precious Harry Potter. _Awww, how... pathetic._

He sneered at Potter, who was chomping down ribs like a slob. Ginny was eating rather daintily, and Draco wondered with as little food she probably gets, why she wasn't eating like Potter. _She's way too good for that oaf. _Wait a minute, why did it bother him she was with Potter? Could he possibly be jealous? Draco pushed the thought away when Ginny noticed him staring at her. 

"Draco, hello? Our table is over here!" Pansy grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him over to a booth. They were sitting across from Harry and Ginny, but they both ignored the Gryffindor pair. Such different people wouldn't be caught dead talking to eat other, unless it was cruel.

Pansy ordered two meals and dessert, while all Draco had was a cup of coffee. Much to Draco's disgrace, she was jabbering at him and eating at the same time. He tuned her out, occasionally sneaking a peek at Ginny when he thought she wasn't looking. He had never seen her all dressed up, and she looked stunning. Her dark green dress and silver jewelry reminded him of the Slytherin colors.

Draco looked back over to Pansy. "Merlin, Pansy! You eat like you're pregnant!"

Pansy stopped eating and quickly looked away. It was supposed to be a joke, but she didn't take it like one. She whispered, "Maybe I am."

Draco nearly spit out his coffee. "What? You must be joking!" he nearly yelled.

Tears started to come to her eyes. Before Draco could say another word, she had ran out the door. Draco threw some money on the table, then chased after her. She was half way down the street, and he grabbed onto her arm to stop her from going any further.

"Pansy, wait! Where are you going?" She jerked her arm out of his grasp and hit him with her purse.

"Anywhere that you're not! I hate you! This all your fault, you... you rapist!"

Draco couldn't believe his ears. "I did not rape you! Don't you accuse me of such a thing!" _Everyone three blocks away and closer now thinks I raped her. _He snarled, "I doubt it's even mine. You've probably been sleeping around, you filthy little wench."

Pansy shook her head, then slapped Draco as hard as she could. He took it like a man though, and didn't admit how much it really hurt. "I am not a wench!"

***

Harry was watching Pansy as she got up and left. Once Draco left as well, Harry said with a curious look on his face, "Well, that was weird."

"I know." Unlike Harry who just caught the last scene, Ginny had heard everything. _Draco got Pansy pregnant?_ She couldn't believe it. She didn't say anything to Harry about it though, it was way too personal, and judging by Pansy's character, was probably totally false. From the rumors she had picked up at Hogwarts last year, they had a pretty dysfunctional relationship which was full of jealousy and lies.

After they were done eating, Harry surprisingly asked her to dance to the slow song that was playing on the jukebox. Ginny said yes, but she was a tad embarrassed, considering they were dancing by themselves in front of everyone. It finally hit her that she truly was Harry Potter's girlfriend. _I should be thrilled, so why am I not? Is it because I'm still depressed over Percy's death? Is it because I finally got what I wanted, but that seems to be never good enough for me? Or is it because of Draco? Draco! Why does my mind always seem to come back to that stupid git? I hate him! He's a selfish, arrogant, snobby, conceited-_

"Ouch!" Ginny, lost in her thoughts, had stepped on Harry's toe with her high heel.

"Sorry, Harry!" _It's Draco's fault... There I go again! _She cursed at herself under her breath.

Harry had overheard her and immediately stopped dancing. "Ginny, are you alright? You seem kind of mad at me or something," he said, looking hurt. Ginny didn't want to continue with the date any longer. For some reason, she just wasn't acting like her usual self in front of him.

"It's not you Harry! I just feel a little sick. Can we go home now? I'm so sorry."

He didn't look convinced. "I guess so. So do you really want to be my girlfriend?"

Ginny put on a smile. She didn't want to be responsible for making Harry feel any worse. "Of course." It may have reassured Harry, but to her, it was a statement full of doubt that was silently nagging at her all the way home.


	7. Chapter 6: Secret Owls

**Chapter 6: Secret Owls**

"Well, how was the big date?" asked Mrs. Weasley as soon as her daughter walked through the door.

"Alright..." Ginny tried to keep the disappointed look off of her face.

Mrs. Weasley frowned and gave Ginny a puzzle look, but Ginny really didn't want to elaborate. "I'm tired," she said, trying to avoid further questioning.

"Okay. Well goodnight."

"Goodnight, Mum."

Ginny walked up to her room, threw her purse on the ground, and fell on top of her bed. She sighed loudly as she reminisced the events of her date. She decided to rest her eyes for a moment before changing out of her dress, but instead drifted off into a deep sleep. She was probably there for twenty minutes or so, though she could of sworn she had only been sleeping for a minute, when she heard a faint tapping on her window. She yawned loudly, opened her eyelids that felt heavy from sleep, and spied a small silver owl with a tiny piece of golden parchment in its mouth.

"I wonder who that's from," she pondered to herself as she went towards the window. The moment she opened it and let the cool breeze blow in, the bird dropped the paper and took off into the midnight sky. She assumed it was a letter from Harry arranging another date as she untied the black ribbon and unfolded the note, but instead, the letter was completely blank.

"How strange." She paused for a moment before getting out her school spell book. She vaguely remembered a spell for revealing invisible ink, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. _Ah, here it is! _She took her wand out and performed the spell, but much to her dismay, nothing happened. She couldn't understand why someone would send her a blank letter.

_Ginny...._ She threw the letter onto the floor. She was shocked by the words that had appeared on the parchment. _It couldn't be... Tom Riddle? _Much to her relief, it wasn't him.

_It's me, Draco. I can see you through this letter. Write something._

She retrieved the letter and sat down at her desk. She took a quill out of the drawer, dabbed it in a bottle of ink, and wrote: _Hi, Draco. What's up?_

_I need to know something. When are you going to Diagon Alley to pick up school supplies?_

_Tomorrow. _ She paused then wrote a question._ Why do want to know?_

His handwriting became more sloppy and faster. _I need to meet you there. When tomorrow?_

_Probably around 2._

_Okay, I'll be in the Potions shop. Loose your family and come to me ASAP. Got it?_

She didn't understand why Draco was acting so weird. But then again, when_ is_ Draco normal? _I guess. But why all this secrecy?_

_I don't have time to explain. The spell should be wearing off soon. See you then._

_Okay. Bye. _

Ginny waited for a reply, but nothing more appeared. She had no idea why on earth he was so desperate to meet her. She had a feeling it had something to do with his plan against Voldemort, but even then, she had no idea what could be up his sleeve. 

***  


  
"Ginny, it is your turn to use the Floo powder," said Mr. Weasley, as he handed her a sac of the magical mixture.

  
  
"Okay," she replied as she grabbed some of the powder and got into the dusty chimney. Floo Powder always made her nervous. One mistake and she could end up in the Amazon Jungle or the North Pole. "Diagon Alley!" she yelled.

  
  
In an instant, she was thrown onto the stone floor. She looked up, relieved she had ended up in the right place. Diagon Alley was extremely crowded with students who had waited until the last minute before waiting to buy their school necessities. She noticed as she stood up, the looks on two very frightened parents of a Muggle-born first year. She wondered why anyone would be afraid of wizards, but Muggles are just not used to magical ways, she assumed.

  
  
"Ginny, we are going to grab a bite to eat. Want to come along?" asked Mrs. Weasley as she put her hands gently on her daughter's shoulder.

  
  
She thought that now would be the perfect time to get away from her family's prowling eyes. "Oh, no thanks, Mummy. I'm not at all hungry. Can I just browse around the shops?" she asked, putting on her most innocent looking face.

  
  
"Well, I don't know," Mrs. Weasley started.

  
  
"Oh, of course, Ginny," said Mr. Weasley. He turned to his worried wife. "Dear, she is perfectly safe in Diagon Alley," he reassured her.

  
  
"I suppose." She pointed her finger at Ginny. "Just don't you dare go wandering around in Knockturn Alley."

  
  
"Oh, Mother! Of course not!" Something that annoyed Ginny to no end was the fact that her mother always thought the worst in her. _That's the problem with having so many sons._ Mrs. Weasley gave her daughter a spit bath to wash off all the dirt on her face from the Floo Powder.

  
  
"Ugh! Ok, I'm fine now!" scowled Ginny, getting very annoyed and embarrassed.

Finally, she headed over to the Potions shop. She glanced around outside to see if Draco was there, but she did not see him. She stepped inside the crowded shop, weaving her way in and out of the various rows. There was all sorts of cauldrons for sale, but of course she found Draco gazing at a solid pure gold one with fancy engravings and encrusted diamonds. There was a charm protecting people from touching it.

Draco was gazing at it longingly. "Merlin, I would love to have that," he said when he finally noticed Ginny beside him.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Please tell me you did not make me meet you here to see some glitzy cauldron."

Draco took his eyes off the cauldron and frowned at her. He turned around and whispered to her, "Of course not. It's much more serious." He started walking away. "Follow me, but stay far enough away that it doesn't look like you're with me."

Ginny was a little ticked off by his instructions. Was there a real reason he shouldn't be seen with her, or was he just ashamed of being seen with a poor Muggle lover? The curious and adventurous side of Ginny won over the stubborn and prideful side, so she followed him exactly like he told her. Besides, there was a part of her who was too ashamed to be seen with a snobby Muggle hater anyways.

They walked further down the cobblestone path than Ginny had ever gone before, and she noticed that the crowd was getting smaller the further they went. She started to get worried the moment she saw the sign "Knockturn Alley". Suddenly she remembered Harry's account of the place when he had accidentally gone there, all the rumors she had heard about the awful place, and her mother's warning. But she didn't care. She was doing this for Percy, and she repeated that phrase to herself over and over again.

It wasn't cheery and light like Diagon Alley. It was depressing and dark, and just being there sent chills down Ginny's spine. She didn't dare look anyone in the eye, instead, she was focused on Draco's shiny slick hair.

Draco made a sudden right turn in between two buildings. He did it so smoothly and quickly that Ginny almost lost him. It was so dark that Ginny had to squint to see five feet in front of her. Draco turned around once they were out of sight from anyone and talked to her.

"Okay, we're here," he said, relieved.

"Where?"

He muttered a spell and a hidden door on the ground revealed itself. Ginny looked down to see crooked steps leading to the basement of one of the buildings.

A gleam appeared in Draco's eyes. "The place where my father kept his most prized possessions." He headed down the steps, reciting the "_Lumos_" spell with his wand. He grabbed onto Ginny's hand, which surprised her, and lead her down to a cellar. The door automatically shut behind them.

"Whoa," was all she could utter. There were numerous spell books, swords, amulets, potion ingredients - anything you could think of was cluttered into the small room.

Draco laughed. "Whoa is right. This room contains some of the most powerful dark magic the wizarding world has to offer. My father stored it here, for fear of getting caught by the Ministry. If it was found in our house, he would have most definitely been sent to Azkaban. Everything in here is our weapon against Voldemort." He ran his hand across a black spell book which was caked in dust. "This book contains some of the most powerful dark magic in the world. It was a gift to my father from Voldemort."

Ginny's mouth went dry. Dabbling in illegal dark magic was something she had never planned on doing. "Voldemort?"

"Yes. The Dark Lord himself," he said with a sort of awe in his voice.

"It doesn't look like it's ever been opened."

Draco quickly turned around. "It can't be opened. Well, it can, but only an heir can open it. My father's job was to find the heir."

Ginny was not catching on. "So he was killed because he didn't find one?"

"Oh no, he found one. But the heir didn't cooperate with the Dark Lord's wishes. Voldemort blamed the heir's disobedience on my father, and they both were killed."

Ginny paused for a moment to collect her thoughts, then asked, "Well, who was the heir?"

"Percy Weasley," he sighed.

Ginny gasped. "No! It's not true!"

"Yes, Ginny. I'm afraid it is true. Percy joined the Death Eaters, but then tried to break away from them once Voldemort ordered him to kill his family."

Ginny's legs felt weak, and she dropped to the floor. "No! Percy would never do such a thing! He would never join You-Know-Who!"

Draco yelled, "Yes he did! You don't know how cunning Voldemort can be or what the thought of power can do to a man! You know how Percy was - so ambitious, so ready to do anything to get to the top!"

"You're making this up!" she screamed.

"I wish I was." He turned back around and sat down next to her. She was huddled up in a ball, crying and shaking her head in disbelief. He grabbed her chin and tilted her head up. "Ginny, look at me," he said gently as he brushed the hair out of her eyes. "That book was created by Godric Gryffindor, and with its magic Voldemort can grow stronger with the help of the heir. But there's a catch. The same magic that can help him can also _destroy_ him."

"It's up to me, isn't it?" she whispered. "If Percy is an heir, that means I'm an heir too."

"Yes. But I am here to help you all the way through." Ginny gazed into Draco's eyes for a moment. He looked completely sincere, just like the night he had asked her to help him. As a sign of her trust in him, she lightly kissed his lips. They were so soft and so gentle, she almost couldn't believe she was kissing Malfoy.

"Why did you do that?" he asked.

"I don't know," she shyly said, looking away from him. She had just cheated on Harry with his worse enemy, and Draco had cheated on his possibly pregnant girlfriend. She felt so dirty at that moment.

Draco immediately got back down to business. "I want you to come over to my house and pick up the book. The owner of this store was a very close friend of my father's, and I'm sure he figure out some way to get it to me. It's too suspicious trying to walk out with it now. I'll owl you when I receive it."

"Alright," she replied simply, still trying to take in everything she was just told.

"Now you better go before your parents wonder were you are."

"Shoot, you're right!" she left as fast as she could. She didn't even bother saying bye to Draco. All she wanted to do was get away from Knockturn Alley. Once she was safely back in Diagon Alley, she leaned up again a store wall and closed her eyes, sighing deeply. _What am I getting myself in to?_


	8. Chapter 7: A Warning

**Chapter 7: A Warning**

Ginny felt someone grab her shoulders. She opened her eyes to see her brother Ron glaring at her. Before she could say a word, he yelled, "Why were you in Knockturn Alley?"

"Shhh, Ron!" She didn't want people overhearing their conversation. "I must have just wandered off. You're not going to tattle on me, are you?"

"You liar! I saw you following that scum Malfoy! What is with you lately, Ginny?" Ron's grasp got tighter, and Ginny shoved him away from her. She had never seen her brother get this angry.

"None of your business, Ron! I'm old enough to do whatever I please!" She walked away from him, trying to loose him in the crowd.

Ron caught up to her. He said urgently, "Ginny, listen to me. You can't trust Malfoy! I know him better than you do. Everything he says is lies! Stay away from him!" Ginny was going to ask Ron to help her, but now she realized it was no use. There was no way she could tell anyone about Malfoy's plan. This was something she was going to have to deal with on her own.

"Can you trust me, Ron?" she asked him.

"Of course."

"Then don't worry about me. Trust my judgment." Ron didn't answer. Instead he smiled at his father who was approaching.

"Hi, Ron! Oh, you found Ginny!"

"Yes. She was... just looking at the new Firestorm broom," Ron lied. Ginny was relieved that her brother didn't rat on her for disobeying their mother. 

"It sure is a beauty," said Ginny.

"You owe me big time," Ron muttered to his sister when their parents weren't looking.

***

Draco stood in his father's secret room for a few moments after Ginny left. _She bloody kissed me. This is going to be easier than I thought. Much easier._

He went a different path that he had come down. It was one that led to the inside of the store, hidden by a dark, barely noticeable closet. Draco peeked through a crack to see if there were any customers there. Once he saw that it was all clear, he stepped out and proceeded to the store owner. 

"Mr. Shadney."

The old man turned around, frightened by the unsuspecting voice he heard. Stowing away dark materials seemed to make men rather paranoid. "Oh, it's you, Mr. Malfoy," said Mr. Shadney, relieved it was only the son of his former best customer. He shined his decaying teeth at Draco. The old man was a sight to the young Malfoy. He had long, uncombed gray and black hair and a glass left eye. He was hunched over from old age, and Draco thought he looked uglier than the character in the old flick "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". "Can I help you?" he asked, breaking Draco's hypnosis of the disgusting creature. 

"Yes. I came to ask you a favor."

Mr. Shadney put his hand on Draco's shoulder. "Come, let's discuss it in my office, so we don't get interrupted." The man, no less than eighty, lead the teenager into a crammed office in the back of the store. When they arrived, he asked, "Now, what is this favor?"

"The book. You know the one I'm talking about. I want you to bring it to my house in any way you can get it there without being suspicious."

The man frowned. "I don't know about that. The Ministry has really been cracking down lately."

Draco knew how to get the man to comply. He took out of his robes a sack full of money. "This should help you make the right decision. I know you aren't nicknamed Mr. Shady for nothing."

Mr. Shadney hesitated, but the temptation of money was too great for him not to take a risk. He grabbed the velvet back from Draco's hand. "Deal."

"Will you have it to me by tomorrow night?" He added, "If you do, I'll give you double that amount the next time I come."

The man's tired face lightened up at the mention of more money. "Of course, sir!" he said enthusiastically. 

"Good." Draco, no longer needing Mr. Shadney's services, left the store. Waiting for him outside he found his mother.

She eagerly asked, "Did you give her the potion?"

"No."

"Damn you, Draco! I told you to give it to her now!" Narcissa scowled as she stomped her feet. She gritted her teeth to keep her from raising her voice too loud. She didn't want someone overhearing their conversation and tipping off the Ministry.

They started to walk out of Knockturn Alley. "It's too earlier in the game to give it to her now. That would look way too suspicious," he told her.

"But-"

Draco interrupted. "Look, she'll be over tomorrow night, and I can give it to her then."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Positive," said Draco, as he grinned at her. "She can't resist me."

"I hope your little plan works." She whispered, "If not, I'm going to force feed it down her scrawny little throat and give her to Voldemort myself."

Hearing that made Draco angry. "Why do you want to help me again?"

Narcissa looked hurt by his question. "You are my son, that's why! I don't want to loose you like I lost your father."

_Wow, that almost sounded sincere. _Draco wanted to believer her, but couldn't. Sure, she was probably scared of being alone, but there had to be some ulterior motive. He knew her all too well.


	9. Chapter 8: The Malfoy Manor

**Chapter 8: The Malfoy Manor**

School was going to be in session in two days, and Ginny was frantically trying to get her homework assignments done that she had put off until the very last minute. She was sitting at her desk writing a history report, when she heard a tapping on her window. She recognized the silver owl - the note in its mouth was from Draco.

She opened the window, and the owl dropped the parchment into her hands then hurriedly flew away, not even bothering to rest before making its journey home like most owls did. Ginny assumed that it was a rented owl for speedy deliveries.

The letter told her exactly what she was expecting it to say - that the book was at Draco's manor. It went on to say to be sure to come late at night. Ginny didn't want to break more rules and risk getting caught again, but she felt as though she had no choice. If Voldemort wanted her family dead, how long will it be before he succeeded? She had no time for fooling around, that was for sure.

***

Ginny, with homework done and belongings packed, went downstairs and told everyone in her family goodnight. "Why are you going to bed so early?" Ron asked curiously. He was playing wizarding chess with Mr. Weasley, and was beating him.

"Oh, I'm just worn out. I need to get back on a good schedule for school anyways." Ron glared at her. Even though she had fooled her parents, her brother knew that something was up. He was paying very close attention to her ever since she had disappeared the day of Lucius' funeral, and seeing her come out of Knockturn Alley had made him even more bothersome.

"Well, that sounds like a good idea. Goodnight, Ginny," said Mrs. Weasley while she was sowing Ron a new sweater.

Her father said, deep in thought, "Night, Gin," as he tried to figure out a way to escape Ron's check.

"Night."

She went into her room, closing the door and turning off the lights as if she were really going to bed. She quickly changed out of her pajamas and into the jeans and tank top she had worn that day. Ginny got under her sheets and pulled them all the way up to her neck to conceal her clothing- just in case anyone should perhaps check on her.

It seemed like she was in that bed for days, lost in her thoughts, staring up at the ceiling, and checking her clock. _Time really does creep by when you're bored. _Finally, around 11:30, she didn't hear any more sounds coming from downstairs. She listened a little longer to be sure. A few minutes later, she heard the door next to hers shut, signaling to her that Ron had gone to bed. It was safe to leave.

She sighed deeply as she repeated the process a little over two weeks ago of sneaking out. She had never deliberately broken so many rules. She was supposed to be the _good _child. _Percy, I'm doing this for Percy._ Repeating that phrase was the only thing that seemed to keep her from panicking.

Luckily, this time she climbed down the old tree, the sky was crystal clear and the moon provided adequate light to see her footing. She landed on her feet smoothly and started walking on the gravel path.

She stepped off the path and decided to walk in the grass - in the quite, stormless midnight, the crunching of the rocks seemed painfully loud. But when she got to the end of the path that lead to the main road, she realized she had no idea were she was supposed to be going. "Great, Virginia. Just great."

She looked down the road, which was full of potholes, and over the hill that Fred and George named "Beaver Mountain". She could see something coming her way in the distance, but without wearing her glasses, she couldn't see make out who the blurred figure was. But however it was, he was sure going fast.

Once the figure got closer, Ginny noticed a boy with slick, blonde hair. She knew right away who it was. Draco Malfoy, of course. "Bloody hell! Is that a Firestorm?" Ginny said excitedly once he stopped. He jumped off the broom, and she examined it. Being around nothing but boys had made Ginny almost as crazy about Quidditch as any of them.

"Weasley! Nice to see you too," he said sarcastically. It always bothered him a little if he was not the center of attention.

"This must have cost a fortune," she said in amazement. "I would kill for one of these. This year I'm on the Gryffindor Quidditch team - a beater. My stupid Cleansweep is so slow and jerky."

Draco raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Really? I didn't think many girls were interested in Quidditch."

"You obviously haven't met the right kind of girls," she replied, smiling. "I've always loved riding broomsticks, but I've always been too shy to play Quidditch for the team."

He hopped back onto his broom. "Are you saying that you're the right kind of girl for me?" She grinned, but didn't answer him. "Hop on, Weasley."

She climbed onto the back of the room and put her arms around Draco to keep her balance. "Thanks for picking me up." She laughed. "I honestly had no clue where your house was."

"I didn't think so. Women do not have any sense of direction."

"Hey! I have a sense of direction! It's just... wrong most of the time," she said sheepishly.

Draco looked to Ginny behind him. "If I go at top speed, I can get to my house in two minutes. Do you wanna see how fast this broom can go?" He was ready to show off.

"Oh, yeah!" She wrapped her arms around tighter while she anticipated her ride on the fastest broom the market had to offer.

"Alright. Here we go!" He lunged forward, racing upwards at lightening speed. Ginny laughed in excitement.

"Oh my Merlin! This is so fun!" she yelled as looked at the scenery below her. The cool, summer wind was blowing her hair back, while she noticed Draco's hair was so gelled down it wasn't even moving a centimeter. She decided once she landed she would mess it up just to tick him off.

"Pansy cannot stand heights or fast speeds. She's such a sissy." When Draco said that, Ginny's heart sank. _Oh right, Draco has a maybe pregnant girlfriend. Wait, why do I care? I have Harry. Harry Potter is my boyfriend. _Draco slowed down and pointed to the Malfoy Manor. "That's my house."

"It's beautiful!" Ginny knew Draco was rich, but by the appearance of the landscaping, the immense size of the pearly white house with marble floored balcony, and all the expensive statues and fountains that lead to the main doorway, to her he lived like royalty.

"Thank you," he said as they landed on the balcony. He opened one of the double doors golden doorknobs and smiled at Ginny. "After you. This is my room." He lit the chandelier above his bed, revealing to Ginny the bedroom of her dreams.

"Wow. You are so lucky. My room is so crammed you have to be careful not to hit your head or trip on anything when you go in." She flopped down on a leather armchair by the bookshelf.

Draco's hand ran over a row of books by where Ginny was sitting. He realized that he hadn't read any today. "To you, I look lucky. But as they say, the grass is always greener on the other side. Living here all my life has made me rather jaded to material items. What I long for is what you have."

Ginny looked at him curiously. What could she possibly have that Draco wanted? "What do you mean?" she asked.

Draco's gray eyes looked into Ginny's brown one's. She could sense his hurt as he said, "What I mean is, I never know if people truly like me for me, or if they only want to befriend me for my status and money. Even my own family treats me that way. My mother is trying to get on my good side since I own all our wealth now, and my father... well, he was always pushing me to be smarter and more cunning and more powerful. He did it only because he wanted his name to be respected. I can't trust anyone. Not friends, family, or girlfriends. Trust doesn't exist when your name is Malfoy."

Ginny didn't know how to respond. She wanted to say she was sorry, but she knew that sorry doesn't heal pain. She really didn't know what Draco went through. Ginny would take loving friends and family over wealth and power any day. 

They were in silence for a few minutes, before hearing a knock on the door. "Come in," said Draco.

It was a tall, blonde woman with a sapphire dress on. Around her neck was a diamond necklace, and on her ears were matching diamond earrings. There was a tiny, fluffy dog wagging its tail at her heals. She took a puff of a cigarette before saying "Hello, Draco dearest!"

He put on a fake smile and greeted her. "Hi, mother."

The woman, who in Ginny's opinion looked way too young to be Draco's mother, grinned at her. "Well, Draco, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"

Draco sighed. "Narcissa, this is Ginny Weasley. Ginny, this is Cobra... and Narcissa."

Narcissa frowned at her son and flashed him a glare, but quickly changed her demeanor into a pleasant, friendly one. "Draco, call me Mum. Ginny, you are such a pretty girl! Such beautiful red hair!"

"Thank you," Ginny said politely, but she couldn't help but think that Narcissa was very phony.

"Would you like something to drink?" she asked Ginny.

"Yes, please."

She turned to Draco. "Draco?"

He sighed. "Yes."

"Okay, I'll be back in a minute."

"Thank you," said Ginny right before Narcissa left.

When she came back, she handed Draco and Ginny their drinks. "I hope you like blueberry punch, dear," she said to Ginny.

"Oh, that's fine." 

Ginny was about to take a drink when Draco yelled, "Ginny!"

She took the glass cup away from her mouth and asked, "What?"

Draco's eyes flashed back and forth from Narcissa's to Ginny's. "Uh.... I need to say a toast first." Narcissa shifted uneasily and flashed Draco a look that said, _"Why are you procrastinating? Let her drink the damn potion!"_

Draco stood up and held up his drink. Ginny followed his lead while grinning at him curiously. She didn't know why he was acting so strange. _Do rich people always toast before they drink?_

"To...," Draco tried to think up something fast. "To this wondrous life we lead! May we live it in... peace, harmony, and love.... forever!"

"Cheers?"

"Cheers!" he replied. But when they tapped glasses, Draco purposely did it too hard, and Ginny's drink went spilling all over her shirt.

Narcissa was furious, and it looked like she could have strangled her son at that moment. "Oh, Draco! You idiot!" Her temper called down a bit when she noticed Ginny looking frightfully at her. She said calmly, "Look what your clumsiness did to poor Ginny's shirt."

Draco was relieved that his plan worked. "I'm sorry." He didn't know why he chickened out of giving her that potion - it would have been so easy - but apart of Draco didn't want to loose her. Memory potion is a total metamorphosis of the person who drinks it. You can tell them anything and they'll believe it without question. He could have told her she was a Death Eater ready to do anything Voldemort pleased, but that would have been almost as bad, if not worse, than killing her. Anyone associated with Voldemort, no matter how favorable they are to him, eventually ends up at his mercy. Voldemort is the embodiment of death to everyone who crosses his path.


End file.
